Trending
LISBON -- A radio system is being purchased that would allow county 911 dispatchers to communicate should they lose power.
Were that to happen, 911 calls would automatically be answered and dispatched by the Carroll County Sheriff's Office, which serves as Columbiana County's back-up during emergencies when the 911 system goes down.
Brian Rutledge, deputy county 911 director, said the purchase of the five MARCS radios -- one for each of the local law enforcement agencies that answer 911 calls -- would allow dispatchers to communicate no matter what happens.
MARCS stands for Multi-Agency Radio Communication System, which is used by sheriff's offices in Ohio, as well as state agencies, such as the Ohio Department of Transportation and the Ohio Emergency Management Agency. Most police departments do not have MARCs, however.
He reported at last week's 911 advisory committee meeting they recently purchased the five portable MARCS radios -- one each for the public safety answering points (PSAPS) that answer calls under the county's 911 system: the county sheriff's office and the East Liverpool, East Palestine, Columbiana and Salem police departments. The cost is $79.
Right now, if the power goes out and Carroll County begins answering 911 calls, the local dispatchers still have no way to communicate. Having a MARCS portable radio solves that problem.
"This way when he need to talk to each other we'll have the capacity to do that," Rutledge said, adding it also provides local police departments with a direct link to other agencies that use MARCS, which can come in handy.
In other business, Rutledge briefed the committee on what steps they took to prepare 911 dispatchers for the COVID-19 pandemic. He said dispatchers were instructed early on what questions to ask callers.
Rutledge said they also made some adjustments to the system should an entire police department's dispatchers be placed in quarantine due exposure to the virus or infection. If that were to happen and no one was available to answer calls, those calls would automatically be rerouted to another PSAP.
System changes were made that would also reroute calls from the sheriff's office to the county Emergency Management Agency should all of its dispatchers be placed in quarantine.
tgiambroni@mojonews.com